Teratogens

During pregnancy, the embryo or fetus is very sensitive and at risk to whatever dangers the mother faces. For nine months the mother and child are interconnected and have a mutual relationship. The embryo or fetus survives off of the nutrients and lifestyle of the mother. It also feeds off of the vitamins and proteins that enter the mother's bloodstream through the placenta. Unfortunately, this system can have negative effects. Any drug that enters the mothers system, prescription or non-prescription, legal or illegal, are considered teratogenic (Johnson, Nusbaum, Bejarano, & Rosen, 1999)

I believe that what the mother does before she is pregnant is her business. If a woman drinks, smokes, or does any other type of bodily harm to herself with substances, even though it is wrong, it is her body and she can do what she pleases with it. But when that same woman becomes pregnant, her focus should be that developing creature in her belly. The woman should discontinue the use of all teratogens because she is now responsible for two lives.

My girlfriend and I are very serious and are considering having children. She and I are fun loving people. We tend to go to social events were music and drinking may be involved. Regardless of how much fun we are having, I would never let her drink if she was pregnant. Drinking while pregnant can cause a disorder known as fetal alcohol syndrome in the fetus. Children born to mothers who drink tend to be smaller in height and weight, with smaller brains, heart defects, and their faces are very oddly shaped. They tend to have flat noses and other defects such as hearing loss and a lot of space in between their nose and mouth (Church, Eldis, Blakley, & Bawle, 1997; Ornoy, 2002).

A child born to a mother who smokes tends to be lighter in weight and may cause problems in cognitive development such as learning and antisocial behavior (Fergusson, Horwood, & Lynskey. 1993). Children born to mothers who use marijuana, heroin, or other drugs tend to suffer from tremors and sleep problems. They also are shorter than the average child of their own age (Cornelius, Goldschmidt, Day, & Larkby, 2002). None of these problems are worth the unnatural high that one gets from drugs. A life is at stake and can be damaged permanently by something that is extremely temporary.

My older cousins gave birth to a daughter about three or four years after I was born. They were known in the family and

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